Contests and Awards

Become the next acclaimed Tupelo Press author!
We welcome your submissions and offer many opportunities each year to submit your work to us.

General Notes

It is important that you read the complete guidelines for each contest or reading period before submitting your work. Writers submitting work for consideration may be published authors or writers without previous book publications. Submissions are accepted from anyone writing in the English language, whether living in the United States or abroad. Tupelo Press does not publish cook books, children's books, inspirational books, graphic novels, or religious books. We do not accept emailed manuscripts for any contest, reading period, or submission opportunity.

Before submitting an entry to Tupelo Press, please explore the work of the writers we have published. We're drawn to technical virtuosity combined with abundant imagination; memorable, vivid imagery and strikingly musical approaches to language; willingness to take risks; and an ability to convey penetrating insights into human experience.

Berkshire Prize

The annual Tupelo Press Berkshire Prize Award for a First or Second Book of Poetry is an open competition for a poetry manuscript with a $3,000 prize. This year’s judge is Carol Frost. Prior winners include Kristina Jipson, Daniel Khalastchi, Megan Snyder-Camp. Click here to see last year’ winner.
Read the complete guidelines here.

Sunken Garden Chapbook Poetry Prize

The Sunken Garden Poetry Prize is a prestigious national poetry prize established in 2002. The Prize has drawn submissions from around the country that have been judged by renowned poets such as Martha Collins, Patricia Smith and Tony Hoagland. The winner receives a cash prize, an introductory reading at the Sunken Garden Poetry Festival, and publication of a chapbook.

Click here to see all past winners. All entries must be postmarked or uploaded between August 1 and October 31.
Read the complete guidelines here.

Dorset Prize

The annual Dorset Prize is an open competition for a poetry manuscript, with a $3,000 prize. Prior winners include G.C. Waldrep, Joshua Corey, Rusty Morrison, and Ilya Kaminsky.
Click here to see past winners.
All entries must be postmarked or uploaded between September 1 and December 31.
Read the complete guidelines here.

Tupelo Quarterly 6 Prose Contest

Tupelo Quarterly, a literary journal, extends and expands upon the vision of Tupelo Press, publishing work by emerging and established writers and artists of many sensibilities and styles. Tupelo Quarterly cultivates generous artistic community, celebrates intellectual curiosity and creative risk, and presumes abundance. We hold the gate open, not closed. Please send us one, single, solitary piece of prose: any style or sensibility, 15 pages or less. The contest ends January 1. Read the complete guidelines here.

Snowbound Chapbook Award

The annual Snowbound Chapbook Award is an open competition for a poetry manuscript with a prize of $1,000 and 25 copies. Prior winners include Kath Jesme, Brandon Som, and Stacey Waite. Click here to see all past winners.
All entries must be postmarked or uploaded between December 1 and February 28.
Read the complete guidelines here.

July Open Submissions

Throughout July, Tupelo Press welcomes open submissions for book-length poetry collections (48-90 pages) and chapbook-length poetry collections (20-47 pages). This is not a contest and manuscripts are not read anonymously.Read the complete guidelines here.

Prose

Our editors now read submissions of fiction and non-fiction year-round, including novels, novellas, short story collections, essays, and memoir. Prose manuscripts are not read anonymously. All prose submissions must be mailed; online submissions are not acceptable.Read the complete guidelines here.

Translations

Tupelo is proud to accept works of translation into English. Visit our book pages to see our many works of translation, including those from the Arabic, Chinese, French, Korean, Russian, Spanish, and Vietnamese. Translation submissions are not part of any contest, nor of the July Open Reading Period. They are not read anonymously. All Translation submissions must be mailed; online submissions are not acceptable.
Read the complete guidelines here.

Poetry Project

The Tupelo Press Poetry Project was established in 2007 to provide poets and creative writing teachers with engaging, challenging prompts or provocations for writing new poems. Our guest editors' selections are featured in an online gallery. All Poetry Project submissions must be uploaded to our online submission manager; mailed submissions are not acceptable. For more information click here.